Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Thank you all for hanging in there with me...on this month of my Reinvent-tage Retreat...30 days...we made it...I found along the journey that I wanted desperately to cling to an identity that is slipping away...one that gave my ego a lot of positive stroking...plenty of recognition...and a modicum of fame...Resistance has many faces...it sneaks into your life...and before you know it...you retreat...back into that comfortable safe world you know so well...that requires little more than breathing throughout the day...to survive...just survive...Yet resistance...if you meet it head on...and embrace it...leads you to new ideas...new adventures...new creativity...and, eventually...a new you...open...ready to be filled...It takes not skill...nor intelligence...just a willingness to be open to the unfolding of your soul...

The more skill you use, the further you'll be from what your deepest love wants. -Rumi

And open I have been...I have spent this last month enveloped in creativity...reinventing myself and my art...looking deep into all my nooks and crannies...discovering new things I could do...and new ways to do...anything...

I have discovered a strength...and a power...I did not know I had...and I will walk on my path with a new purpose...open to try new things...with open heart and open mind...

As this journey ends...a new journey begins...

See post here for your invitation to join the Reinvent-tage Retreat...and to see how the process works...

Monday, October 29, 2007

If I had thought about it, I wouldn’t have done the experiment. The literature was full of examples that said you can’t do this.’ —Spencer Silver (inventor of Post-it adhesive)

When you think you can't...your right...there are only cans in my life from this day forward...I can accomplish what I want...I can do whatever is necessary to get what I want...I can be the person I desire to be...I can...

The can't are behind me...the cans lie before me...shining brightly...just waiting for me to pick them up...and run...

As we wind this process down...I am melancholy...I will miss this daily interaction...yet I vow to go forth...in creativity...

See post here for your invitation to join the Reinvent-tage Retreat...and to see how the process works...

Sunday, October 28, 2007

Today's Intention...give thanks for the life that flows through my relationships...

I exist in a web of relationships - links to nature, people, God. I trace out these links, giving thanks for the life that flows through them...Like spider pearls below, this web of relationships grows larger every day...through my travels, my students and my blog...many people touch my heart every day and, in some small way, I hope I touch theirs...

Spider web watercolor by Cyrille Jubert visit The Dog Museum for more about this and other of his pet paintings...especially the Jack Russell portraits. This is amazing after my attempts at watercolor this week...

Some strands of this web are twisted or broken: I feel regret, anger and disappointment...some I created and some I did not...regardless, I still feel a tug at my heart...I pray for the gift of acceptance and forgiveness...

See post here for your invitation to join the Reinvent-tage Retreat...and to see how the process works...

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Self-promotion is the name of the game for any small business...an artist is a small business...so promoting my self is a way of life for me...I can promote my decorative painting business/workshops/speeches ad nauseum...but my fine art, not so much...I am stepping way out today as I give a demo of my art for a local gathering...I spent the morning preparing a new logo and a new flyer...I am pleased with them...tell me what you think...please click for closer look and to read text...

a new flyer that includes my fine art...

See post here for your invitation to join the Reinvent-tage Retreat...and to see how the process works...

Thursday, October 25, 2007

In honor of Miss Fanciful herself...who seems to be as deep in the throes of creativity as I am this month...I find myself somewhere between the revenge seeking/broom riding/whacked out wicked witch and the uber nervous/clock watching White Rabbit..."Oh Dear, Oh Dear...what shall I do...so much to do...not enough time...Oh Dear, Oh Dear"...having violent mood swings...necessitating much chocolate...

If one wishes to be fanciful...imaginative it is....and inventive...and courageous...and, at times, laughing raucously at yourself...even if you, by choice, fall down the rabbit hole...2 or 7 times...

Not altogether fanciful am I...and though the physical appearance and attributes of such imaginary beings may have been, well um, overemphasized or just plain silly...the witch is in...for the time being...as the sign indicates...
You can see from the first photo that I have gone all out with Halloween decor this year...an upgrade from my usual bowl o' candy corn pumpkins...the shenanigans of miss fancy pants has rubbed off on me and caused me to go over the top...spending nearly 12 bucks...the teeny, tiny witch was $7...

above is the teeny, tiny paper witch I found in an antique store in Chicago...carried home in my carry on so as not to squish her skirt...but squished her nose instead...below is my usual h-ween decor...

So what pray tell does this have to do with the Reinvention Retreat Rebecca???...I have reinvented myself for h-ween...the witch is in...tee hee...but she is determined to be a happy/positive being...cause I would hate for redneck nerdboy to stop reading my blog because I am emitting too much negative energy for him with his morning cuppa...
BTW...if you google fanciful...a fanciful twist comes in 3rd after fanciful.org and before roux fanciful hair rinse...not bad placement my dear...

So I spent most of the day shopping and deciding just how to frame and mat my art...it was not easy...is this color right...is this too fancy or plain...should I double mat...do I do it myself...do I pay someone to frame...how do you attach hangers...does everything need to be framed...

When I got home I was overwhelmed...unclear...and frazzled...with the help of my friend Wy...she calmed me and helped me see that I have enough right now to hang on November 1...I could make prints and cards and some lower price point items by the 15th...it does not all have to be done by the first...

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

‘Only those who attempt the absurd will achieve the impossible.’ — M. C. Escher

For many years it was believed that it was aerodynamically impossible for the bee to fly...the bees are glad nobody ever told them...that is why I am glad nobody ever told me this reinvention process was impossible...

So today it hit me...I need to get the art I have made framed for presentation and hanging in the gallery...only seven more days...one short week...(nail biting/hand wringing/panic attack time)...and I have a magazine to get finished and a demonstration to do at the local showhouse on Saturday...can one woman do all this without loosing her mind...the jury is still out on this one...

Napoleonic bees are my favorite...I have NB fabric all over the house...I also have several NB paintings and the NB appears on many items I own...someday when this process is slowed a tad...I will show you some of them...

See post here for your invitation to join the Reinvent-tage Retreat...and to see how the process works...

This is the shell that inspired this trip to the edge...please click to see detail of all images...

The sketch with a watercolor pencil

The sketch with the lines worked with water

The painting in progress

random infinity

This was just an easy escape from watercolor yesterday...although I paint very watercolor-like, diluting my acrylics with a lot of water, it is easier for me to accomplish what I set out to do with acrylics...I imagine this is due to the fact that I have been using them for 15 years or more...

"Sometimes we have to travel to the edge of ourselves to find our center." - Buck Ghosthorse, Lakota Medicine Man

on the edge...my first dulcimer performance...full concentration...notice the lips...and red face (hot flash)...

when you go to the edge of creativity...beyond your limits...great things can happen...this is what I have been doing this month...and I have stretched...I have exercised...I have experimented...and I am a little sore...but I am standing on the edge of creativity...and that is powerful...

overcoming fear...leaning forward...teetering on the edge...risking it all...and jumping without a net...leaving behind yesterday's comfort place for a new discovery...a new passion...a new me...

See post here for your invitation to join the Reinvent-tage Retreat...and to see how the process works...

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Well this is my rendition of the painting in the video in this morning's post...it is not easy...what did I discover while painting...

It takes a long time to learn to paint that sky and sea in 9:35 minutes

You need good quality watercolor paper...mine began to fall apart as I painted

You need good quality watercolor brushes...I just had acrylic brushes

I need to take a watercolor class

I kind of like the painting...but it is not close to the one painted in the video...but I have grown...now I will be off to purchase better paper and brushes...did you paint with the video...let me know...

Monday, October 22, 2007

I crowded several things in to today's artwork...watercolor and acrylic techniques on background..image transfer techniques on some of the text using gel medium and text printed on plain paper with an inkjet printer...collage techniques on the rest...

This is the result so far...it is going to be a background for further experimentation...

Now I am going to crowd my days with experiments of art...counting today, I only have 10 more days until the gallery opening...and 10 more days of this retreat...

‘The real measure of success is the number of experiments that can be crowded into 24 hours.’ —Thomas Alva Edison

Last week we looked at Vincent van Gogh...and experimented...this week I look at Leonardo da Vinci...one of the people I would most like to invite to dinner...and most like to be emulate...for my children often call me a Renaissance woman...

A true Renaissance man... the idea of a whole and complete person would be a fitting description of da Vinci...he always thought outside of the box and many of his ideas have been an inspiration for some modern technology...his genius lives on in his ideas and work.

He was one of the greatest painters of the Italian Renaissance...but he was much more...one of the greatest inventors and thinkers of his time...he was a gifted architect, musician, scientist, and mathematician...the inventor of genius...a student of life...and voracious experimenter...

The Mona Lisa and his legendary interpretation of the Last Supper are his most famous paintings...and no, i will not attempt one this week...but I am going to incorporate some of his images...

See post here for your invitation to join the Reinvent-tage Retreat...and to see how the process works...

Sunday, October 21, 2007

The intention for today is to return to center...to be balanced...in this instant...100 percent...

I am traveling back to Florida today...it has been a very rewarding trip to Chicago...the class was good...they challenged me to visit ideas...as students always do...and, then, return to my truest self...my center...a little changed...

"I cannot go where others have been, I cannot see what others saw, what I see I see alone." -Edgar Allen Poe

New places, new people, and new situations...I love to explore and discover and find new directions to head...but different is different...what I see and discover is unique to me...each new experience and new person influences my whole being and, as my life forever changes, so does my influence upon the universe and the universe upon me...

Life is fluid...

always in motion...

always changing...

Being still...

in the center of me...

always changing...

See post here for your invitation to join the Reinvent-tage Retreat...and to see how the process works...

Saturday, October 20, 2007

experiences are great teachers...and I treasure all my experienced...good and not so good...

The beautiful home I am staying in this weekend has stories to tell...like all 119 year-old homes do...the one that touches my heart is connected to the little bowl of rocks above...on Thanksgiving Day one year 2 people knocked on the door...they told the owners that they were scientists who worked with longitude and latitude...they went on to say that this home had a correlation to the great pyramids of Giza...they gave the owners 2 rocks and left...

From that day...the owner has kept a bowl of rocks in this turret room...by the front door...all guests are invited to take a rock with them...

Today I am teaching 16 excited minds how to make a success of their art businesses...if you think about me today...please send me warm thoughts for a successful class...I return the warm thoughts... which rock shall I take...

See post here for your invitation to join the Reinvent-tage Retreat...and to see how the process works...

Friday, October 19, 2007

Today's Intention...experiment by failure...smart failures are life lessons...

I am safely in Chicago...actually a suburb...in this beautiful Victorian home...perhaps I will take some more pictures of the inside later...with permission of Pam the owner..

Decorative painters have beautiful homes...don't they...

there is a secret about the turret room...I will share later...can you guess?!?!?

In my usual high-maintenance fashion...when the group sponsoring the class said they would take me downtown...I thought they meant downtown LaGrange (where the class is)...DUH...they meant downtown Chicago...so I threw a monkey wrench in all the plans to take me to The Art Institute and to Chinatown...BOO HOO...now I really want to go downtown...

Okay...I should have known...but life has been so busy for me these past few days...I really need to chill out a little before the class tomorrow...regroup from artist in process...and change into expert teacher person...remember when I told you I don't transition well from one thing to another...

So within 1 hour of arriving...I have changed all the best laid plans...the girl who was taking me downtown Chicago is disappointed...the girl I am staying with had to get ready and take me downtown Lagrange...when she wanted to rest and regroup herself today...she has been getting ready for company (moi) and 17 people in her home tomorrow for the class...

so I guess my daughter was right when she called me high-maintenance a few days ago...I disagreed at the time...but upon reflection....hummmmmmmmmmm...

Today's Intention...experiment by failure...smart failures are life lessons...

Failure, if you learn the lesson it teaches, is a smart failure...and smart failures are always worthwhile...

My life journey has been strewn with learning experiences, small...and large...and huge. You can see the wisdom of the lessons learned written on my face.

Life lessons are wonderfully poignant. The lessons below spring from a potent inner wisdom I learned at a young age when a terrible accident changed the course of my life forever...I learned to be alive...because life is short and...

Everything happens in its own time, exactly as it should.

Trust your instincts, vibrations, and gut feelings...it is God's way of speaking to you.

Focus on being of value.

There are many perspectives to any situation.

Hold those you love close.

Courage comes from our spirit.

Once the future becomes the present...it is perfect.

Develop soul power so that when your world unravels...your self will remain intact.

There are no ordinary moments.

Forgive everyone everything...including yourself.

You always have choices.

It is NEVER too late.

A lesson is repeated...until learned.

Everything in your life has a lesson to teach...

I am off to Chicago today...teaching a lively bunch of artists the business of art...be back soon...

See post here for your invitation to join the Reinvent-tage Retreat...and to see how the process works...

Thursday, October 18, 2007

above is the almost finished vincent...my copy of van gogh's self-portrait (to see the original please scroll down to my first October 16th post...to see progress photos scroll to the 2nd October 16th post))...I worked on the right eye (left side of face) and the beard more...I completely repainted the background...perhaps I will lighten it though...and then detailed the clothing...below is a close up of the face...

since I could not upload photos yesterday...this is today's work...tomorrow I leave for Chicago to teach a business workshop to 16 artists...I will try to post if I have access to Internet...I have the posts done, but I have to post them...

"It is a mistake to suppose that men succeed through success; they much oftener succeed through failures. Precept, study, advice, and example could never have taught them so well as failure has done." -Samuel Smiles, author of "Self Help" 1880

Are you struggling with the idea of 'how do I grow as an artist?' Reading, researching and looking at art blogs helps, but you have to go and try stuff...and then try more stuff...and keep on trying more stuff until you don't want to make stuff anymore...

Cre8Tiva On Experimenting...

Well, if you haven't guessed by now, this month is all about experimentation...experimentation means trying stuff...a hundred or a thousand times...trying every combination under the sun...just because because nobody else has tried it before...until...

See post here for your invitation to join the Reinvent-tage Retreat...and to see how the process works...

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

I am working furiously today...trying to finish up a graphic design commission...trying to get ready to go to Chicago, I am teaching this weekend...trying to get to Hobby Lobby...and work on vincent...

I have wanted to go into Jacksonville to Hobby Lobby since Saturday...I need more canvas and some other supplies...and I have to get packed...

If you want to be a bad artist..never take a risk...be afraid to try anything new...stay where you are...clean your studio...research ad naseum...you get the picture...

If you want to be a good artist...experiment and learn...take chances...try out new things to see if they work for you...stretch your limits...and get busy making art...

Yesterday was a trip to the wild side for me...vincent took me by the hand and lead me through the fields of our dreams...to places new to me...he taught me to see...and showed me that imitation is a grand way to learn...

I will go back into the studio with vincent this morning...and experiment and imitate and grow...

See post here for your invitation to join the Reinvent-tage Retreat...and to see how the process works...

but of course...i chose vincent...a self-portrait...I need to challenge myself...push my limits...and this certainly did

van gogh's short, stippled brush strokes are difficult to do...the background was challenging also...all that swirling...i had a hard time getting enough paint on my brush...i tend to paint very washy, so full out gobs of paint was way out of my comfort zone...his beard and right eye gave me fits...his flesh is sort of greenish in the original...since this was a small canvas, i had to use a tiny, few-haired brush...also not in my comfort zone...

this is stretching me and my skill...i love it...it is not done by any means...but is is a good start...

my laptop is having big issues...so i am having to back everything up in hopes of reformating the hard drive...i usually blog from there are blogger has big issues with my mac...all i can do is type and upload photos on the mac...no spell check, color changes, font changes, etc...please bear with me...and pray that i can fix the laptop...